pitiless

adjective

piti·​less ˈpi-ti-ləs How to pronounce pitiless (audio)
Synonyms of pitilessnext
: devoid of pity : harsh, cruel
pitilessly adverb
pitilessness noun

Examples of pitiless in a Sentence

The soldiers were pitiless toward their enemy. gave the beggar in the street a pitiless look and kept on walking
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The scene offers a pitiless view of the sexism, and materialism, of the culture in which the girls were being raised. Mark Oppenheimer, Vulture, 25 Feb. 2026 Biel is a pitiless cokehead who, we’re told, later marries a senator and has four kids. Ky Henderson, Rolling Stone, 15 Feb. 2026 In his experiences and chronicles of the great ideological battles of the twentieth century, Curzio Malaparte was a shape-shifter—pitiless, clinical, cynical, unsentimental, indifferent to morality and idealism. Leah Downey, The New York Review of Books, 7 Feb. 2026 Told together, the overlapping stories deal with issues of mental illness, lives of quiet desperation, and the pitiless march of time. David Morgan, CBS News, 29 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for pitiless

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of pitiless was in the 15th century

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Cite this Entry

“Pitiless.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pitiless. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.

Kids Definition

pitiless

adjective
piti·​less ˈpit-i-ləs How to pronounce pitiless (audio)
ˈpit-ᵊl-əs
: having no pity : harsh, cruel
pitilessly adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on pitiless

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